I am very comfortable using Radiant. It just seems to click in my mind.But as I browse the screen shots on some of the threads around here, I see some pretty amazing looking maps made with mainly Models.

So my question is, how many of you actually create most of your map in a 3D model application, rather than Radiant? Would you recommend this method to others? How easy is it to import the 3D created map into Radiant?What complications can you expect using this method?

I have put together the layout of ut4_shipping and I want to make sure I commit to the right process.

No point in making models for the current engine. The lightmap resolution is far too low and the way they're applied to models makes it very difficult ti light models up properly. Vertex lighting doesn't looks good on flat surfaces, and you can't use bump or normal maps with it. However, this doesn't means 3ds max is useless, far from it. You cam make misc models in max and then shadow bake it to replace ingame lighting. Not something you'd do on a global scale but for minor models it works pretty well. And you will need to how to model for UrT HD.

In essence, brush based geometry is a thing of the past. Mesh based geo is the way to go.

Well with what HappyDay did with Prominence and Blender now is a good opportunity to at least begin the process of examination and with my bit of playing around there is certainly a lot that can be done and the only hard part is conveying what the addition of a 3d editing application can added to the tool set as far as discovery goes.

To get a jump start you could go to any site that offers creative common models that you can use to either play around with or even included in your map as to fair use.

A good place to start would be anything built for Poser or Daz studio as 9 time out of 10 you can get them as an obj object as well fully textured.

I would also recommend adding DazStudio to the mix as well.

With DazStudio you can collect and catalog a lot of different 3D objects to use as map objects.

As a suggestion don't look at the big picture but instead look for ways and means of adding to your own works at the per item level and QA player tests I had done using GrandHall, which is abusive beyond what is necessary, I don't think anyone is going to run into to many problems as they do now with maps in 4.2.

P.S. You don't have to use just 3ds Max and there are many free alternatives you can use and if one is already a master at Radiant it should not be all that hard to add an editor like Blender as they both do more or less the same thing but in a slightly different manner.